Jack Cade, byname of John Cade (born , Ireland—died July 12, 1450, Heathfield, Sussex, Eng.) leader of a major rebellion (1450) against the government of King Henry VI of England; although the uprising was suppressed, it contributed to the breakdown of royal authority that led to the Wars of the Roses (1455–85) between the houses of York and Lancaster.

Cade was living in Sussex when, in 1449, he was accused of murdering a woman. He fled to France but returned in 1450 and settled in Kent, posing as a physician named John Aylmer. In June 1450 Jack Cade emerged as leader of a Kentish rebellion of small property holders victimized by high taxes and prices. By assuming the name John Mortimer, he identified himself with the family of Henry VI’s rival, Richard, duke of York, who was living in virtual exile in Ireland. Cade issued a manifesto demanding the removal of several of the King’s chief ministers and the recall of Richard. His forces defeated a royal army at Sevenoaks, Kent, on June 18, and on July 3 he entered London, where he executed the hated lord treasurer, James Fiennes, Lord Saye and Sele. Nevertheless, Cade’s lawlessness quickly alienated the Londoners, who drove the insurgents from the city on July 5–6. The government persuaded most of the rebels to disperse by offering them a pardon, but Cade continued his resistance. Wounded and captured near Lewes, Sussex, on July 12, he died while being transported to London.

Learn More in these related articles:

Dec. 6, 1421 Windsor, Berkshire, Eng. May 21/22, 1471 London king of England from 1422 to 1461 and from 1470 to 1471, a pious and studious recluse whose incapacity for government was one of the causes of the Wars of the Roses.

Less than three months later Jack Cade, a man of obscure origins, led a popular rebellion in southeastern England. In contrast to the rising of 1381, this was not a peasant movement; Cade’s followers included many gentry, whose complaints were mainly about lack of government rather than economic repression. Thus the remedies they proposed were political, such as the resumption of royal estates...

(1450) Uprising against the government of Henry VI of England. Jack Cade, an Irishman of uncertain occupation living in Kent, organized a rebellion among local small property holders angered by high taxes and prices. He took the name John Mortimer, identifying himself with the family of Henry’s rival, the duke of York. Cade and his followers defeated a royal army in Kent and entered London,...